Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Much to the outrage of animal lovers across the world, the city of Yulin, in China, has become the site of a sickening dog eating festival.

Thousands of terrified dogs — many of them stolen pets — are butchered for human consumption at the annual dog eating ‘celebration’ that is slated for June 21.

Forced to travel long distances and crammed into crowded wire cages, the dogs languish without food or water as they await their fate. They watch on as those before them have their throats slit. Many are reportedly beaten — even burned or boiled alive.

The suffering of dogs during transport and as they await slaughter is extreme. Photo: IBTimes/Reuters

The Yulin dog eating festival actually only began in 2010. It was started by dog meat traders as a way to boost business, but has quickly attracted the ire of the international community.

As distressing as the news is, there is comfort to be found in the extraordinary mainstream media coverage and the public outrage that is accompanying it. Worldwide, concern for animals and their welfare is on the rise — as is the public’s determination to force positive change.

A dog stares at others hung up for sale in Dong Kou market. Photo: HSI

Brilliant campaign work by Animals Asia and Humane Society International has given global recognition to the victims of this event. This follows years of investigations and on-the-ground work by Animals Asia to end the trade of dogs and cats for food. So intense has the international pressure become that last year the city of Yulin vowed to not support the festival. It still went ahead. But fortunately, fewer dogs were slaughtered.

Since then, Yulin authorities have attempted to appease the international community by claiming this year’s event would be cancelled entirely — but investigations have revealed that preparations for the cruel festival were still underway — and on June 21 the slaughter went ahead, unhindered.

Cat meat is also sold at Yulin’s slaughterhouses. Photo: HSI

With high profile celebrity support and petitions now reaching the millions (you can sign one here), the unprecedented international pressure on Yulin to permanently cancel the dog eating festival may soon be successful.

But without cultural change, any victory is likely to be short lived. Because unless those who have grown up eating dogs learn to widen their circle of compassion to recognise dogs as ‘friends’, not ‘food’ — China’s dogs will always be at risk.

Friend? Or food?

Compassion through cultural change

To a Westerner, it seems unfathomable that some people might see no ethical problem with consuming ‘man’s best friend’. Even to Chinese urbanites who have grown to love dogs as pets — the practice is unthinkable. But for those whose ancestors have eaten dogs for thousands of years, the power of cultural conditioning is profound.

It’s nearly impossible to comprehend — until you realise that here in Australia we are victims of the very same cultural conditioning.

We too have been raised into a society that has normalised the slaughter and consumption of highly intelligent domestic animals — animals who are capable of experiencing fear and suffering — animals who will show affection, if given the chance. But rather than ‘dogs’ and ‘cats’, we call them ‘pigs’, ‘lambs’, ‘cows’ and ‘chickens’.

We will create a kinder, more caring society for ourselves if we can all widen our circle of compassion to those we have been taught to think of as ‘food’, rather than ‘friend’. Like people in China who value dogs only for their meat, many of us have simply never been given the opportunity to appreciate ‘food’ animals for the unique and curious individuals that they are.

And yet our own heritage has paved a pathway that has led us to confine, abuse, and kill these living, breathing individuals en masse — in modern day factory farms and slaughterhouses. We kid ourselves that they are just ‘dumb animals’. But science has proven they are anything but.

For many, the outrage at the thought of ‘dog stew’ is only matched by the frustration at only being able to register protest by way of a petition signature. But we are not powerless to end this suffering. By making kinder choices, we can impact the lives of needy animals in a very real way, every single day.

Saturday, May 30, 2015

The new amendments to the Animal Welfare Act proposed by Serbian government include:

1 - No shelter animal will have guaranteed safety. Over 80 000 dogs and cats are in danger of being euthanised because amendments are ambiguous and have left it open to interpretation.

2 - Repealing the fur farming prohibition that was due to come into force in 2019, thus assuring the horrific deaths and brutal torture of thousands of animals including rabbits, chinchillas, foxes and ferrets. The government hopes to compete with China in the cheap fur market.

3 - Removing the wording in welfare law that specifies slaughterhouses MUST stun farm animals before death allowing slaughterhouses to do as they see fit. More than likely slaughterhouses will choose to increase productivity rather than stun, guaranteeing farm animals a barbaric death of agonizing pain and fear.

Because YOU CARE Sasa Pesic 450 dogs are safe: 241,000 animal lovers formed a virtual human shield around a cage-free dog sanctuary in Nis, Serbia. Care2 online petition to protect the sanctuary was an overnight sensation, delivering tremendous political impact in Serbia that halted the planned Christmas eviction of the dogs.

Sasa Pesic says: NO to the CRUEL amendments to Serbia's Animal Welfare Act

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

The massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake rocked Nepal on April 25, 2015. The epicenter was in the Gorkha district, 50 miles from the city of Kathmandu.

Three days after, there is still little news about its impact on animals in this region. HSI said that animals at the zoo in Kathmandu are safe. However, many people are desperately trying to locate their pets and farm animals.

HSI, IFAW and WAP international disaster teams are preparing to deploy to Nepal to help animals who've been injured or left without shelter. Local animal welfare organizations are asking for our help with animal rescue efforts. The need for clean water, food, and medical care is urgent, so we must act fast!

UPDATE FROM KATHMANDU ANIMAL TREATMENT CENTRE (KAT)Message from KAT. Rose, the Communication Officer, April 25, 2015 The good news first: All of KAT's Team and the animals are OK. Deeply shocked but alive! We must care for the wounded animals. We need the bare essentials: gauze bandages, disposable needles, antiseptic... I ask most sincerely for your support! The KAT facility itself sustained only light damage and the animals are fine. Given the massive damage to the local infrastructure (streets are ruined, power outages are expected to continue, etc.) it will be much more difficult to care for the animals. The long-term consequences of this disaster are not yet clear and in the short term, we must expect a large number of wounded animals in dire need of care. That is why I am urgently asking for your help. Message from KAT, April 28, 2015Dear KAT supporters, it's been really hard for us to communicate with everyone due to no electricity. We would like to inform that we have temporary suspend our rescue work due to the uncertain situation. Also an update on KAT, due to the frequent tremors we had, some part of the wall premises collapsed. We are doing our best to cover up the walls with everything we can to prevent the dogs from escaping. Also, we are currently facing huge problems with food & water. Thus, we are seeking for your kind donation such as dry food for the cats & dogs, water, sacks, blankets & candles. We would truly appreciate for the donation items to be dropped of at our center. Once again, we thank everyone for your kind thoughts & support.

According
to German news, the rat is no longer in the hands of Florian Mehnert. Mr.Mehnertwas interrogated by the police.The animal was kept only four days alone in the
box.The
paintball gun was not armed.In the installation box, the
artist has now hung pictures of dead drones.

In last few days, Florian Mehnert received hundreds angry messages and death threats, he says. I hope Mr Mehnert understand now – when animals get their
rights, we, human beings, will finally get our freedom and we'll live in safe world!

If use of drones in military operations is ethical and legal, we can argue now. What matters is that whether or not we ever achieve "world peace", working for peace is a very noble cause. Every life saved, including THE RAT, is a victory.

Saving Life on Earth: Actions

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♥ THANK YOU IN THE NAME OF ALL ANIMALS LONGING FOR THEIR RIGHTS ♥

About Me

Basically, world today has become a concrete jungle. ♥ Maybe, I attempt the impossible in order to improve the world for animals but I still believe in a thing called LOVE. ♥ If we learn to CARE again about delicate wild things and about the wild places on our planet, then maybe they would return! ♥ Conclusion: I am against the superior human beings and I believe that ALL GOOD THINGS ARE WILD AND FREE!